Chicks found dead

I had 6 Wyandotte chicks that I hatched under a Silkie hen, they are now about 2 and a half months old and were running with my other chickens, in the last week I have lost 3. I would come down to let all the chickens out and one chick overnight had been killed, heads missing. At first I thought it was the other chickens so I segregated the chicks but have just found another dead this morning. My thoughts are that a rat has killed them as there are rat droppings on the ground and in and around the food dispenser. Has anyone had this problem before? The coop is on a concrete slab and locked every night so I'm sure it is not a fox plus where the chicks were last night is in a fenced (floor to ceiling) area of its own. I'm just so puzzled at the moment and very sad I keep loosing my chicks.

Heads missing is not other chickens, it's usually rats or something in the weasel family. You need to find the holes in your coop and plug them. Remember, rats and weasels can fit through areas the size of a quarter, so you need to be very, very thorough.

Lots of folks won't use poison around their chickens, but I've used the bait stations with good results.They're designed so there's no way the chickens can access the bait. Problem is, now I have a dead rat under the hay barn and it stinks . But, it's dead and the chickens are fine, so I'm basically happy.

Rachel BB

Stem cell transplant from unrelated donor in Feb 2015. Thank you to all my friends here on BYC for all your support during my treatment and ongoing recovery!

Heads missing is not other chickens, it's usually rats or something in the weasel family. You need to find the holes in your coop and plug them. Remember, rats and weasels can fit through areas the size of a quarter, so you need to be very, very thorough.

Lots of folks won't use poison around their chickens, but I've used the bait stations with good results.They're designed so there's no way the chickens can access the bait. Problem is, now I have a dead rat under the hay barn and it stinks . But, it's dead and the chickens are fine, so I'm basically happy.